Tying knots
A suture knot can be tied during a medical procedure by use of a suture retainer ring in connection with a suturing instrument. The retainer ring allows a user to orient a suture about the instrument, such that a knot in the suture is automatically advanced and tightened by withdrawing the instrument from a surgical site after placing the suture. The retainer ring can be an integral part of the suturing instrument, or it can be removably coupled to the suturing instrument to facilitate use of the retainer ring with other suturing instruments.
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The invention relates to devices and methods for tying knots.
BACKGROUND INFORMATIONSuturing of body tissue is a time consuming aspect of many surgical procedures. For many surgical procedures, it is necessary to make a large opening in the human body to expose the area that requires surgical repair. There are instruments available that allow for viewing of certain areas of the human body through a small puncture wound without exposing the entire body cavity. These instruments, called endoscopes, can be used in conjunction with specialized surgical instruments to detect, diagnose, and repair areas of the body that previously required open surgery to access.
Some surgical instruments used in endoscopic procedures are limited by the manner in which they access the areas of the human body in need of repair. In particular, the instruments may not be able to access tissue or organs located deep within the body or that are in some way obstructed. Also, many of the instruments are limited by the way they grasp tissue, apply a suture, or recapture the needle and suture. Furthermore, many of the instruments are complicated and expensive to use due to the numerous parts and/or subassemblies required to make them function properly. Suturing remains a delicate and time-consuming aspect of most surgeries, including those performed endoscopically.
Another difficult and time-consuming aspect of suturing tissue is tying the suture into a knot. The type and placement of the knot will depend on the nature of the surgical procedure, for example, ligation, fixation, or approximation; however, regardless of the type of procedure, it is necessary to manipulate the ends of the suture to form the required loop(s) to tie the knot. Further, it is subsequently necessary to manipulate and position the knot relative to the tissue. The manipulation and positioning of the suture and knot is difficult, because there may be limited space in which to work and limited visual access to the final position of the knot, in particular in an endosurgical environment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe invention generally relates to devices and methods for simplifying the tying of knots during a medical procedure. Suture knots can be tied by use of a suture retainer ring in connection with a suturing instrument. The retainer ring allows a user to orient a suture about the instrument, such that a suture knot is automatically advanced and tightened by withdrawing the instrument from a surgical site after placing the suture. The retainer ring can be an integral part of the suturing instrument, or it can be removably coupled to the suturing instrument to facilitate use of the retainer ring with other suturing instruments.
In one aspect, the invention is directed to a suturing instrument. The instrument includes an elongate body member and a collar. The elongate body member has a distal portion. The distal portion of the elongate body member defines an opening. The collar is disposed about the elongate body member and defines two slits. In some embodiments, the collar includes a body that defines an opening therethrough. The collar can further include a protrusion disposed on the body. The body can be cylindrical and the protrusion can be a ring circumferentially disposed about the body. The ring can include a flexible material, and the slits can be radially disposed on a circumference of the ring. In addition, the slits can extend substantially the entire length of the ring.
In other embodiments, the distal portion of the elongate body member can also define a slot in communication with the opening in the distal portion of the elongate body member. Further, a needle catch can be disposed on the distal portion of the elongate body member. In various embodiments, the collar comprises a flexible material and the two slits are disposed proximate one another to form a flexible flap. In one embodiment, the two slits can be disposed about 180 degrees apart. In another embodiment, the collar can define a third slit. The third slit can be disposed proximate one of the two slits. Further, the collar can be slidably disposed on the elongate body member.
In another aspect, the invention relates to a suture retaining device. The device includes a body having an opening therethrough and a protrusion disposed on the body. The protrusion defines two slits.
In various embodiments, the body can be cylindrical and the protrusion can be a ring circumferentially disposed about the body with the slits being disposed on a circumference of the ring. The ring can be circumferentially disposed about a midline of the body. The slits can be radially disposed on a circumference of the ring. The protrusion can include a flexible material with the two slits radially disposed and proximate one another to form a flexible flap. In one embodiment, the ring can include a third slit disposed on the circumference of the collar. The third slit can be radially disposed proximate one of the two slits. In another embodiment, the two slits can be disposed about 180 degrees apart. Further, the body can be slidably disposed on a suturing instrument.
In another aspect, the invention relates to a method of tying a knot with a suturing instrument. The method includes the steps of inserting a needle and a suture attached thereto into an opening defined by a distal portion of the suturing instrument, lacing the suture through a slot defined by the distal portion and disposed adjacent the opening on the suturing instrument, forming a first loop with the suture, inserting the first loop into a slit defined by a collar disposed on a proximal portion of the suturing instrument, forming a second loop by wrapping the suture about a protuberance disposed on the distal portion of the suturing instrument and threading the suture through the second loop, and inserting the suture into a second slit defined by the collar. In one embodiment, the method also includes the steps of inserting the suturing instrument within an opening in a body, advancing the needle through tissue in the body and into a needle catch, and withdrawing the suturing instrument from the body thereby pulling the first loop from the first radial slit and releasing the second loop from about the needle catch.
These and other objects, along with advantages and features of the present invention herein disclosed, will become apparent through reference to the following description, the accompanying drawings, and the claims. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the features of the various embodiments described herein are not mutually exclusive and can exist in various combinations and permutations.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSIn the drawings, like reference characters generally refer to the same parts throughout the different views. Also, the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead generally being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. In the following description, various embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to the following drawings, in which:
In general, the invention relates to improvements in suturing devices, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,364,408 and 6,043,351, each of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. Further, the invention generally relates to devices and methods for simplifying the tying of suture knots during a medical procedure. A device according to the invention can be used intracorporally to facilitate the tying of suture knots by incorporating a suture retainer ring onto a suturing instrument. The suture retainer ring allows a user to orient the suture about the suturing instrument, such that a knot is automatically advanced and tied by withdrawing the suturing instrument from a surgical site after placing a suture. The suturing instrument can be used for sling anchoring, closing wounds, or any medical procedure where a knot is required after a suture is placed. The suturing instrument is particularly useful in medical applications where knotted sutures are required in areas of the body that are difficult to access.
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In operation, a user pushes the actuator 48 which, in turn, pushes a spring-loaded rod 80, which pushes the needle holder 58 out of the needle exit port 24. The user continues to push the actuator 48 until the needle 70 enters the needle catch 34. The needle catch 34, as shown in
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In various embodiments of the suture retaining device 10, the inside diameter D1 of the body portion 12 is about 0.15 to 0.60 inches and preferably about 0.4 inches, the outside diameter D2 of the body portion 12 is about 0.25 to 0.75 inches and preferably about 0.5 inches, and the outside diameter D3 of the ring 14 is about 0.75 to 1.5 inches and preferably about 1.1 inches. The length 11 of the body portion 12 is about 0.5 to 1.0 inches and preferably about 0.7 inches, and the length 12 of the ring 14 is about 0.06 to 0.18 inches and preferably about 0.13 inches. In alternative embodiments, the body portion 12 can be of a shape other than cylindrical, such as elliptical or rectangular, for example. The shape and material chosen for the suture retaining device 10 will vary to suit a particular application. In still other embodiments, the ring 14 can be replaced by one or more than one protrusion(s) disposed on the body portion 12.
The suturing instrument's component materials should be biocompatible. For example, the handle 46, the elongate body member 22, the suture retaining device 10, and portions of the actuator 48 may be fabricated from extruded, molded, or machined plastic material(s), such as polypropylene, polycarbonate, glass-filled polycarbonate, or other medical grade plastic. Other components, for example the needle 70, may be made of stainless steel. Other suitable materials will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The type of material(s) used to form the suture 40 is not critical to the present invention, as long as the material is biocompatible. The surgeon will select the length, diameter, and characteristics of the suture to suit a particular application.
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In operation, the length of the suture 40 can be controlled by manually sliding the suture retaining device 10 along the elongate body member 22. For example, for a long suture 40, the user manually slides the suture retaining device 10 towards the proximal portion 28 of the elongate body member 22. For a short suture 40, the user manually slides the suture retaining device 10 towards the distal portion 30 of the elongate body member 22.
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Variations, modifications, and other implementations of what is described herein may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be defined only by the preceding illustrative description.
Claims
1-25. (canceled)
26. A suturing instrument, comprising:
- an elongate body member including a distal portion, the distal portion including a curved portion, the curved portion defining a channel for receiving a needle; and
- a collar disposed about the elongate body member and defining at least two slits.
27. The suturing instrument of claim 26 wherein the collar comprises:
- a body defining an opening within which the elongate body member is disposed; and
- a protrusion disposed on the body.
28. The suturing instrument of claim 27 wherein the body is cylindrical.
29. The suturing instrument of claim 27 wherein the protrusion comprises a ring circumferentially disposed about the body.
30. The suturing instrument of claim 29 wherein the ring defines the at least two slits.
31. The suturing instrument of claim 29 wherein the ring comprises a flexible material.
32. The suturing instrument of claim 30 wherein the at least two slits are disposed proximate one another to form a flexible flap.
33. The suturing instrument of claim 30 wherein the at least two slits are disposed about 180 degrees apart.
34. The suturing instrument of claim 26 further comprising a needle catch disposed on the distal portion of the elongate body member.
35. The suturing instrument of claim 26 wherein the collar further defines a third slit.
36. The suturing instrument of claim 35 wherein the third slit is disposed proximate one of the at least two slits.
37. The suturing instrument of claim 26 wherein the collar is slidably disposed on the elongate body member.
38. A suture retaining device, comprising:
- a cylindrical body; and
- a protrusion circumferentially disposed on the body and defining at least two slits.
39. The suture retaining device of claim 38 wherein the protrusion comprises a ring circumferentially disposed about the body and defining the at least two slits.
40. The suture retaining device of claim 38 wherein the protrusion comprises a flexible material.
41. The suture retaining device of claim 39 wherein the at least two slits are disposed about 180 degrees apart.
42. The suture retaining device of claim 39 wherein the ring further defines a third slit.
43. The suture retaining device of claim 38 wherein the body is adapted to be slidably disposed on a suturing instrument.
44. A suture retaining device, comprising:
- a body defining an opening through the body; and
- a ring circumferentially disposed about the body and defining two slits disposed proximate one another to form a flexible flap, the ring comprising a flexible material.
45. The suture retaining device of claim 44 wherein the body is cylindrical.
46. The suturing retaining device of claim 44 wherein the ring further defines a third slit.
47. The suturing retaining device of claim 46 wherein the third slit is disposed about 180 degrees from the two slits.
48. The suture retaining device of claim 44 wherein the body is adapted to be slidably disposed on a suturing instrument.
Type: Application
Filed: May 16, 2006
Publication Date: Sep 14, 2006
Patent Grant number: 7967832
Applicant: Boston Scientific Scrimed, Inc. (Maple Grove, MN)
Inventor: Michael Chu (Brookline, MA)
Application Number: 11/435,708
International Classification: A61B 17/04 (20060101);